I spent a few days in Portland around the holidays in 2016. It was a nice break from work in Seattle and the idea of making a few prints sealed the deal. It rained almost the entire time. I spent the first two days scouting out possible covers and fell in love with this one that sits in front of the courhouse in Pioneer Square.
The last morning of the trip, I grabbed a bunch of towels from the hotel and headed out around 4 AM. It took 3-4 solid wipe jobs before it was clean and dry enough to print. I chose greens, browns, and earth tones to honor the Northwest and the actual weather that morning. I didn’t realize how large the cover was and had no plan on getting it back to, yet alone into the car.
I started to offer $5 to anyone who would watch my stuff for a minute while I took the first round. A man in a suit, a police officer, and a young lady all avoided eye contact and shuffled away.
A woman who was hanging on a bench earlier came and asked me for a smoke. I couldn’t help he,r but offered the $5 to watch my stuff. Instead, she carried it the two blocks and helped me get the print in the car with no blemishes. I went to hand her the money and she said “No thanks, put it towards your art,” and walked away. I’ll never forget that.